This is the text of a talk I gave to a conference examining the legacy of the London 2012 Olympics ten years on, organised by University College London in September 2022. The talk was accompanied by a Powerpoint. As evening drew on we went to what was left of Tower Bridge to watch ‘The Post-Olympic Dream’, marveling at the flickering figures as they vaulted over … [Read more...] about On being left behind : the haunting legacies of London 2012
A SCENE FROM AN UNMADE FILM
In memory of Mantas Kvedaravicius,documentary film maker, killed in Mariupolis,, aged 43, by Russian Federation forces on April 4 2022. This text appears in Livingmaps Review 12. The Long Room in Putin’s Palace on the Russian Black Sea Coast. The room is furnished in the style of Louis XIV, with ornate gilt framed mirrors on the walls. At the far end there is a bigger … [Read more...] about A SCENE FROM AN UNMADE FILM
IN PRAISE OF IGNORE-ANCE
I recently had the experience, fortunately an unusual one, of being snubbed. Blanked Out. Given the cold shoulder. The bum’s rush. Evocative enough phrases to describe the sensation of being ignored. I had offered to give a talk to an academic department where I had previously given seminars, in a college where I had been a visiting professor for a few years and … [Read more...] about IN PRAISE OF IGNORE-ANCE
Building Back Better?
Hysterical Materialism and the role of the University in post-pandemic heritage making: the case of East London[1] The removal of World Heritage status from Liverpool’s new dockside development in 2021 re-animated a rhetorical divide in urban planning which many people had thought well and truly buried – the conflict between the … [Read more...] about Building Back Better?
The Cat Sat on the Map: Some reflections on post human cartography
The city of cats and the city of men exist one inside the other, but they are not the same city. Few cats recall the time when there was no distinction: the streets and squares of men were also streets and squares of cats, and the lawns, courtyard, balconies, and fountains; you lived in a broad and various space. But for several generations now domestic felines have been … [Read more...] about The Cat Sat on the Map: Some reflections on post human cartography
